I recently caught myself watching the new generation that has come to our office with a mixture of horror and admiration. These guys, born in the early 2000s, are like aliens. And you know, it seems they're more normal than us, although it's a bit offensive to admit it.

There's a 22-year-old intern sitting there. The boss asks him to stay late because «we're on fire, we need to step it up.» What did I do at his age? I'd agree out of fear, cancel a meeting with friends, sit until late at night, drink coffee, and feel like a hero, even though I was just a convenient resource. But this guy calmly looks at his watch and says, «Sorry, I have a workout at 6:30 PM sharp. I can't, let's do it tomorrow.» And he leaves. And the sky doesn't fall, and the office doesn't collapse. And I'm sitting there with my jaw dropped, thinking, «Was that even allowed?»

They have a completely different approach to these «personal boundaries.» We, 30-year-olds, grew up with the mindset «be patient, work, and you'll be an ataman.» We were taught that work is suffering that must be endured for the sake of a paycheck. We go to jobs we don't like for years, are afraid to ask for a raise, and soothe our nerves with alcohol on Fridays. But zoomers simply don't understand why suffer. Don't like the atmosphere at work? Quit in a day. Toxic boss? Get up and walk out. They don't care about the stability our parents threatened us with; they care about being comfortable right now. It's infuriating, but damn, how I envy them.